Coffee Scented Safety Pins
by Besieged Infection
Summary: The last generation would row to the island to play for entire days at a time, but after school invaded the image of life the days of laughter faded into the dim memories of early childhood.


**Coffee Scented Safety Pins**

**A story by Besieged Infection**

**Standard Disclaimer Applies**

…

After the journey, laughter became a rare commodity on the island. The old generation of kids would row to the island to play for entire days at a time, but after school became important the days of laughter faded into the dim memories of early childhood. Even Sora fell into the pattern of school, home, and pep rallies that so dominated the rest of the islanders. But Riku didn't, even after four years.

The instant-coffee container was heavy in Riku's hands, which were holding onto the tin as if it were glass as he studied it. _What could be inside?_ He tilted it to the left, listening carefully to the many metallic clicks that echoes from within, almost as if there were rain pounding on the inside. He sniffed it- the scent his father's favorite caramel instant-coffee wafted up and into his nose. Sneezing, he looked towards the sunset. _What could be inside?_ He needed to know before he opened it. _Why?_ So he could be ready for it. _Why?_

The sun set; it was time to go home.

Jumping down from his place on the paupu-tree trunk, the man clutched the tin close to his chest. The sand was gritty beneath his sandals, and the wind picked up just enough to tug at his shorts as he made his way to the small dock where his boat was tied. There would be a storm that night- he could tell. Tugging at the rope tying his boat to dock and jumping in, Riku made his way back to the main island. Slowly, almost hesitantly, the sky unleashed a storm. Waves roiled, and wind screamed, grasping at the man's boat, cajoling it to join the sea in all its anger. Eventually, he connected with land before dragging his boat into a makeshift shed beside his house.

"I'm home," he announced upon his arrival, dropping the coffee tin on the coffee table.

"Welcome back," a weary voice announced from the kitchen. "Did you figure it out, yet?"

"Not yet, but I think it might be safety pins." His comment was met with laughter. "Why don't you tell me what's inside?"

"Now, then, you wouldn't be truly ready for it, would you?" the voice inquired. A woman stepped from the kitchen, then, carrying with her two plates of food, which she set next to the tin. "Now eat- you're later than usual."

"Storm's rolling it," Riku observed as a few drops of rain clattered against the window. It's going to be a rough sea for a while." Silence met this comment as they sat down to eat. Riku glanced over to the tin sitting not too far from his hand, taunting him. "Give me a hind," he whispered, gaze not leaving the container.

The woman stayed quiet for a bit before speaker. "It's had a few names, and comes armed with sarcasm. Sometimes is makes things hard, and sometimes makes them easy." She paused. "It doesn't really have a definition, so it's different for everyone." The feel of a small, delicate hand ruffling his hair brought Riku's eyes to the woman. "You'll figure it out. You're smart, like," she paused, voice choking around her words. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she charged on. "Just like Aramilu."

"I'm not like Dad, really." It had just popped out, seeing her like that, her big brown eyes filled with tears and her hair in thick dread-locks around her face slowly unraveling. "Mom-"

"You'll figure it out," she gasped, visibly pulling herself together as she collected their dishes. "You're strong, just like him." And with that she left.

Riku would have argued, but he knew it was true. He had a strong heart, and the only different between his father and himself was the side they had chosen to fight on when the Heartless attacked so many years before.

…

Boats took time to make when only one person was making them. Riku had known this when he first took up his father's trade. Thankfully, they were in high demand at all times of the year and sold for more than cars did on the islands. After all, automobiles were useless considering there were no real roads to drive them on. Leave those to the mainlanders.

The wood scraped at his skin as he worked with it, leaving the boards limber, malleable to his touch. Leaning over the frame, Riku snagged some nails from the tool-box, placing them in his mouth as he set a board for the siding. Rain raged outside as he worked safely within the confines of his father's old workshop. Off to the side of the front doors, water cascaded down from the roof, forming large puddles in the dirt. Heaving a sigh, Riku wiped sweat from his forehead before setting a nail to the wood, beating it in to hold the board in place. Wincing, he grabbed a piece of sandpaper from his back pocket, running it over the board, glancing occasionally to the other boards he had forgotten to sand down. After an hour of this, the silver-hared man was pouring sweat, panting heavily from the hot, humid air that stained his skin with every breeze. He reached for the board he would next place on the frame, but hesitated, looking over to the water cascading to the ground just outside the door; so cold, yet so inviting.

Dropping the hammer to the ground, he picked himself from the floor, trudging over to the flow with grim meaning. He didn't hesitate- simply plunged into the water headfirst, letting it drench him from head to toe. The cold worked wonders on his throbbing fingers, bringing the pain to nothing more than a dull ache. He'd been at the job for over a year, but the calluses required for that kind of work took time- decades.

"Having fun?" a voice inquired. Stepping from the flow, Riku was greeted with the sight of a familiar pair of sky blue eyes and a set of brunette spikes. "It's been a while."

"You should stop by the island more often," Riku noted, waling back into the runoff. "College can't be _that_ time consuming." Silence met his comment. "I'm not going, Sora."

"You would be great, though- you know this."

"I'm needed here," the man argued, motioning towards the shed with one hand. "No one else has the tools to make boats." Once again, his comment was met with silence. Moving out of the torrent, he made his way back to the boat, setting the next board. His hammer echoed in the empty silence. Reaching for the box of nails, Riku spotted a coffee tin sitting off to the side. _When did that get there?_ Ignoring the tin, he set back to work, placing nails in his mouth for quick access. After a bit, Sora spoke.  
"Your twentieth birthday is soon, right?" he asked, picking around the workshop. Reaching the workbench across the frame, he picked up a jar of sealant, opened it, and took a whiff.

Looking up in tome to see the man's grimace, Riku frowned. "Put that down," he scolded. When he did, the man sighed. "Yeah, my birthday is soon- next week. What about it?"

Selecting another container from the table, Sora pried at the top. "We're thinking of throwing you a surprise birthday party." Inside was sandpaper.

"Well, it's not much of a surprise, now- and stop opening things," Riku reprimanded as Sora moved onto the coffee tin. "I mean it- stop!"

The brunette jumped at his sharp tone, hand frozen in place on the tin cover. With a blink, he set the tin back on the counter, slowly backing away from it, hands up in surrender. "Sorry," he said. "I'm just a little nervous…"

Riku rolled his eyes. "You have no reason to be nervous, Sora," he drawled. "It's just you and me." Fitting a nail into place, the man hammered it into the boat's side, driving it through the wood.

There was a short silence before the brunette said anything. "You're different, Riku. What happened to you?"

"You _know_ that happened," was all he said. A small pause followed this as he hammered another nail in place. Meanwhile, Sora made his way back around the boat to stare at Riku's hands, watching him work.

"Riku, I-" he began, cutting off with a choke, drawing Riku's eyes. "I-" he tried again, only to fall short once more.

Riku heaved an exasperated sigh, fixing Sora with a softer look than he had. "What is it?" he inquired.

Eyes wide, Sora looked to the side, then turned and make his way out of the workshop and into the storm. "It's nothing," he called behind him.

…

Night had fallen, and Riku went in only to find Sora was spending the night on account of the typhoon.

"I'm going to check something in the workshop before bed, okay boys?" Riku's mother announced from the door.

"Got it," Riku replied, heading upstairs with Sora.

Up in Riku's room, the men stripped down to their boxers. Along the line, Riku noticed that Sora was unusually jumpy that night, flinching with every round of thunder, leaping nearly a foot into the air whenever the windows rattled. He finished undressing just as Riku crawled into bed and blew out the emergency candle- using electricity was a risk at that point. Blindly feeling his way about the room, Sora eventually made it to Riku's bed, clamoring beneath the sheets in haste as another gust shook the house. Lightning flashed outside, illuminating the torrents of water just outside the glass.

"Thanks, Riku," the brunette managed after a while on their silent attempts at sleep. "For letting me stay the night, I mean."

"That was all Mom," Riku announced. Silence followed.

"Hey, Riku?" Sora asked.

"Yeah, Sora?" the silver-haired man inquired, turning in Sora's general direction. He could just barely make out the silhouette of the man's hair and that of a box in the window. Carefully tracing the shape with his eyes, he came to the conclusion that it was the coffee tin, despite the fact that he distinctly recalled leaving it in the workshop.

"What do you think someone would do if I told them I loved them?" the brunette asked.

Eyed lingering on the tin, the silver-haired main half-heartedly replied, "Like who?"

"Like…" the man trailed off. "Tidus?" It was more a question than an example.

"He'd probably turn you down nicely. You know how he and Kairi are."

"Wakka?"

"He'd think you were joking."

"You?" Riku's gaze snapped to the brunette at that point. When he gave no response the man repeated himself, voice almost hopeful. "You?"

"I don't know," the man admitted, voice calm and even. The tin was forgotten, then. "Is there something you want to tell me, Sora?" he asked, a worm sensation building low in his chest.

"Riku, I-"

The window flew open as another gust rocked the house, knocking the tin to the floor as the glass shattered, straying shards in every direction. Water began to ravage the room, soaking them within minutes. Motioning for Sora to go ahead, Riku made for the coffee tin-

But it wasn't there.

An alarm went off, and Riku could feel himself go into shock.

_This can't be happening._

Rushing to Riku's side, Sora tugged for the man to follow. The brunette was shouting, but all Riku could do was follow. They went down to the hurricane shelter- a small, waterproof room with food and water supplies- before making the rounds through the house, searching the corners, moving the furniture, checking each room. Before long, it finally occurred to the taller man what they were looking for.

"Mom?" he called quietly, the rage of the storm drowning the sound in its wails. Rushing to the front door, he wrenched it open, taking a few steps onto the porch. "Mom?" He made a move to head towards the stairs that lead down from the deck, but Sora wrenched him back into the doorway. Tearing his arm from the smaller man's grip, he attempted once more to leave, only to be pulled back by an arm wrapped securely around his neck. Struggling to escape from the hold proved fruitless as the brunette dragged him inside, throwing him to the floor and latching the door. "What are you doing?" Riku yelled, looking to Sora in shock.

"_That_, Riku, is a _hurricane_," he hissed, waving one hand towards the door. "You won't last long." They stared each other down; neither moving, neither speaking. It wasn't until Riku looked away was there any movement. Moving forward, the brunette took hold of his friend's hand, pulling him to his feet before leading him back down into the storm shelter. Going through the supplies mounted on one of the shelves, Sora dislodged two sleeping bags before lobbing one at Riku. "Try to get some sleep," he advised. "If the eye passes over the area we can go looking for your mom in the workshop, but we can only do that for five minutes. Any more and we'll be pushing our luck."

Numbly, Riku nodded his agreement, unrolling the bag and crawling in without a word. The storm was almost silent in the room, and the only indication that the storm was ongoing was the red light shining from a box atop one of the shelves. Curling into the warmth of the sleeping bag, he tried to fall asleep, though he knew it would elude him.

A few hours later, Sora glanced at the light- still red. Turning in his sleeping bag, he looked over to the older man. It was hard to tell where he was as the only source of illumination was the red bulb. The light threw itself across everything, draping long lines of light on the floor and casting ominous shadows in place of candles, shelves, and canned food. "Are you awake?" he inquired, voice hushed.

"How could I not be?" the other man groaned in reply. There was movement and with a few seconds of adjusting the two were facing each other. "What is it?"

"It's about that thing I was trying to tell you earlier," the brunette stated, suddenly nervous.

Riku's eyes widened. "In your room?"

"Yeah."

"Well, what is it?" the man inquired, voice too eager for his liking. There was silence for a bit before Sora spoke.

"I think I'm in love with you," he whispered.

Warmth burst through Riku's being at this. Sora _loved_ him. Or, he thought he did, anyway. His mind raced- _how long had Sora being thinking this? What made him realize it? What should I say in reply?_

"I don't know what to say," Riku admitted a few minutes later, a large smile on his face.

A long beep echoed through the room and the red light went out.

"We're in the calm," Sora observed, crawling from his sleeping bag. He reaching blindly for a candle, lighting it was a quick spell. "Let's go," he announced, heading for the door.

Slipping from his own sleeping bag, Riku leapt to his feet, racing after the shorter man. "Sora," he began, grabbing at his arm. "I just-"

"There's no time! We have to check-" A pair of lips cut him off.

Riku was in shock, again. Something had come over him in that moment that he couldn't explain, but…

They pulled apart, eyes wide in surprise before their expressions slowly settled into grins. Just then, the door blew open and Riku's mom burst in. "What?" she asked as the two sent her look of exasperation. "Did I interrupt something?"

"We were just coming to look for you, actually," Sora informed her. They all crawled into sleeping bags, then, none of them aware of the coffee tin filled with safety pins smiling at them from atop a shelf, watching protectively over their sleeping forms.

In the end, Aramilu wasn't ready to go to Kingdom Hearts.

…

**End Notes: Gift fic for ****since she won a contest I set way back when. Hope you guys liked it!**

**Besieged Infection**


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